Shares of pan-Asian life and health insurance firm FWD Group Holdings opened flat on their Hong Kong trading debut on Monday ( July 7 ), after raising HK$3.47 billion ( US$442 million ) from selling 91,342,100 shares in its initial public offering ( IPO ).

The IPO valued the insurer founded by billionaire Richard Li at US$6.14 billion.

Trading under the stock code 1828, FWD began trading at HK$38, unchanged from the IPO price. The shares closed at HK$38.20.

The group “intends to use the net proceeds of the global offering to further enhance its capital position and financial flexibility, which may involve reducing debt, to support growth and opportunities to further penetrate customer and channel reach across its operations, including the enhancement of its digital capabilities and strategy”, FWD says in a statement.

The benchmark Hang Seng Index closed 0.12% lower on Monday, as the US markets were closed last Friday.

More IPO applications

Writing on his weekly blog, financial secretary Paul Chan says Hong Kong stocks have continued to gain momentum this year after growing 18% in 2024.

In the first half of the year, a total of 42 IPOs were completed, raising more than 107 billion yuan ( US$14.92 billion ) – that’s about 22% more than the whole of last year, temporarily ranking first in the world, he says.

“The market is generally optimistic about the performance of the Hong Kong stock and new stock markets in the second half of the year,” Chan says.

“In fact, the number of applications for IPOs in Hong Kong is increasing rapidly. So far, about 200 applications have been received, which has doubled the number at the beginning of the year, including companies from the Middle East and Southeast Asia. This reflects that the rising trend of Hong Kong stocks is attracting more companies to speed up their listing plans.”

He also attributes the growth of the local stock market to innovation. “During the recent rise of Hong Kong stocks, funds have mainly been chasing technology stocks, which has led to a significant increase in the trading of technology-related derivatives.

“Exchange-traded products ( ETPs ) linked to different types of assets are one of the models that facilitate product innovation and have become a new force in supporting the liquidity of Hong Kong stocks in recent years.”